8 life lessons from Olympic champions

The competitors going to Rio have focus, motivation and courage in spades. Just imagine what you could achieve in daily life if you could tap into that medal-winning mindset?

Watching Olympic athletes line up at the start of a race, waiting for the starter gun, you might think that their world is a million miles away from your own. But the mantras they use to get them to the finish line can be applied to everything – from getting out of bed on the right side in the morning to nailing that job interview.

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These former and current Olympians reveal how all of us can be the best version of ourselves.

1. Have a strategy

'Plan ahead for every scenario,' says Tanni. 'There are many parallels between
life and sport: you need to know what your goals are and understand your strengths and weaknesses. This makes planning a vital skill.

'My training group used to practise all sorts of scenarios. This included getting a wheelchair puncture two minutes before a race, so that we would have some idea of how to handle it happening in a race situation.

'Evaluate what you do and refine the plan. This is a skill that can be easily transferred into lots of other areas of your life.

'Ultimately, you may make a couple of wrong decisions,
but when you're in the middle of something, you can't spend time thinking – there's plenty of time for analysis after the event.'

2. Give a task your full attention

James Cracknell, OBE, won gold in both the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games.

'If you're going to do something, do it properly,' says James. 'It takes as much time to do something half-heartedly as it does to do it properly, so you might as well give it 100%. It's not going to take you any longer, but the result will be very different.

'That's the way I approach training, and it applies to various things in life.

'In a job, you can drift through the day box-ticking – or you can do it properly. If you're looking after your kids for three hours, and you're thinking, "I should be doing something else", the kids aren't going to enjoy it and neither will you.

'Instead, focus on it, make the most of them and, ultimately, everyone's going to enjoy it more.'

3. Never give up

'If you get knocked down six times, stand up seven!' says Sharron. 'To be a top-level athlete, you have to realise that you will get knocked down and you will fail. It's the people who get up again and again and again who eventually get to the top.

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'This life lesson applies to everything, from work to relationships. Accept that not everything's going to go your way, but have the bravery and persistence to keep plugging away.

'You're going to have highs and you're going to have lows. It's the people who push through the lows who make it.'

4. Cherish your cheerleaders

'Draw strength from the people who love you,' says Katarina. 'When I came off the track at the London Olympics in 2012, the best moment was seeing how proud my family were.

'If I'm having a tough day at training I think about all the support I have, and it spurs me on.

'I still train in my hometown of Liverpool, so I spend a lot of time with my mum, nan and dogs. I feel so lucky to have their love and support – I wouldn't be where I am today without it. My advice is to draw strength from those around you.'

5. Embrace your nerves

Archer Mel Clarke, won bronze in the 2008 Paralympics and silver in 2012.

'Channel your anxiety in a positive way,' says Mel. 'I knew that I would feel nervous competing but instead of being put
off by these feelings, I embraced them.

'I worked out that when I was anxious, I felt sick and my heart rate went up,
so I tried to replicate that anxiety during my training by putting myself under pressure – such as visualising the experience of competing.

'I surrounded myself with photos of an arena and trained while listening to a recording of crowd noise. When it came to the big day, I still felt nervous, but I knew that
I could shoot an arrow, despite feeling that way.

'This approach – channelling your anxiety in a positive way – can help with anything you feel nervous about, from job interviews to public speaking.'

6. Always focus

'Don't get distracted,' says Dani. 'An Olympic medal-winning mindset is about focus. I was determined to do everything I could to put myself in the best possible shape for that moment of competing.

'Leading up to the event, I'd think about the process of riding a bike to ensure I wasn't getting distracted by the scale of the event, the noise levels in the velodrome, or how my life could change if I won a medal.

'I try to do everything to the best of my ability off the bike, too. Focusing on a goal and not being preoccupied by things around you can help anyone succeed in everyday life.

'If you're facing a big event – whether it's giving a speech or hosting a party – try not to think about what others will think, or different possible outcomes.

Just focus on going through what you need to do step by step.'

Dani is a member of the Wiggle High5 women's professional cycling team. For more information, visit wiggle.co.uk

7. Let people help you

Sprinter Libby Clegg won silver at the 2012 Paralympic games and is part of Team GB 2016.

'Having a guide dog boosts my confidence,' says Libby. 'When I was first registered as blind, I didn't want to get a guide dog. I was quite stubborn, because I wanted to be independent.

'But since getting Hatti, my life has changed for the better. She comes everywhere with me, including to training sessions, and having Hatti by my side gives me confidence off the track, too. She has made me feel like I can do anything, and I know I can trust her fully.

'My advice would be to find your own "training partner" in life and use them as a form of motivation whenever you need a little push. If they believe that you can do something, then you really can!'

Libby is an ambassador for Eukanuba, educating dog owners on pet nutrition

8. Practice makes perfect

Former pentathlete Greg Whyte, OBE, who is now an author and a performance coach for Olympic athletes.

'Success is not a chance event,' says Greg. 'Many psychological traits that define Olympians are shared with successful people in all walks of life.

'Some may be innate but others can be developed, such as dedication, resilience and belief that you can succeed.

'Success is not a chance event – you need to practise. And ensure you're doing so with a perfect technique to optimise your performance – otherwise, irrespective of time and effort, you won't reap the same benefits.'

Greg's pregnancy health book, Bump It Up (Transworld, £14.99), is out 25 August

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